Ground pork seasoned with finely chopped shallot, minced ginger, crushed garlic, salt and pepper, bound with fish sauce and a tablespoon of annatto oil for the signature red colour. Wrapped into thick rice paper sheets with water chestnut and grilled hot over a portable charcoal clay grill until the rice paper crisps. Street food cooking with the fire close.

The portable clay grill (Vietnamese lo nuong) is the apartment-balcony cookware that defines Saigon street cooking. The clay holds heat steadily, the small size keeps the fire close to the food, and the open construction lets the smoke rise straight into the parcels for that signature street-side perfume. A small Japanese hibachi or a Korean gusajeong is the closest Western substitute.

Annatto oil (made by warming neutral oil with annatto seeds, also called achiote) is the colour and the faint pepper-cumin perfume that defines Vietnamese central-coast cooking. Sourced from any Vietnamese grocer; substituted with paprika oil at a stretch.

The rice paper crisps at the edges and softens in the middle when grilled directly over coals; the contrast in texture (crisp shell, soft filling) is the whole point. Eat with herb plates, pickled vegetables, and a sweet-sour nuoc cham dressing for dipping. A cold Vietnamese 333 beer alongside; eaten at the bench, wrapped fresh as each one comes off the grill.